A Proposal of Code Completion Problem for Java Programming Learning Assistant System

To enhance Java programming educations in schools, we have developed a Web-based Java Programming Learning Assistant System (JPLAS) that provides a variety of programming assignments to cover different learning stages. For the first stage, JPLAS offers the element fill-in-blank problem where students study the grammar and code reading through filling the blank elements, composed of reserved words, identifiers, and control symbols, in a high-quality code. Unfortunately, it has been observed that students can fill the blanks without reading the code carefully, because the choice is limited for each blank. In this paper, we propose a code completion problem as a generalization of the element fill-in-blank problem. To solve the drawback, it does not explicitly show blank locations in the code, which expects students to carefully read the code to understand the grammar and code structure. The correctness of the answer is verified through string matching of each statement with the filled elements and the corresponding correct one. Besides, to encourage students to study readable code writing, the correct statement satisfies the coding rules including the spaces. For evaluations, we generated six code completion and element fill-in-blank problems respectively, and asked ten students in two universities to solve them. Their solution results show that the code completion problem is much harder than the element fill-in-blank problem, and requires far deeper code reading and understanding of coding rules

Magnesium for treating sickle cell disease

Sickle cell disease is an autosomal recessive inherited haemoglobinopathy which causes painful vaso-occlusive crises due to sickle red blood cell dehydration. Vaso-occlusive crises are common painful events responsible for a variety of clinical complications; overall mortality is increased and life expectancy decreased compared to the general population. Experimental studies suggest that intravenous magnesium has proven to be well-tolerated in individuals hospitalised for the immediate relief of acute (sudden onset) painful crisis and has the potential to decrease the length of hospital stay. Some in vitro studies and open studies of long-term oral magnesium showed promising effect on pain relief but failed to show its efficacy. The studies show that oral magnesium therapy may prevent sickle red blood cell dehydration and prevent recurrent painful episodes. There is a need to access evidence for the impact of oral and intravenous magnesium effect on frequency of pain, length of hospital stay and quality of life

Advanced abdominal pregnancy with dead foetus: a case report

Abdominal pregnancy is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy in which the zygote implanted within the peritoneal cavity exception at ovaries, fallopian tubes and intra ligament spaces. The diagnosis is challenging and can be missed especially when the imaging facilities are not available in remote areas.A 35 years old, G3P2+0 was admitted to the hospital at 38+2 weeks of pregnancy with the chief complaint of reduced foetal movement for three days. She was taking regular antenatal care with the midwife at the rural health centre and uneventful until 37 weeks of pregnancy. On physical examination, the abdomen was distended, the foetal parts were easily palpable, no visible foetal movement and the foetal heart sound was not audible. Abdominal ultrasound scan identified the term foetus of abdominal pregnancy without foetal cardiac activity. The patient underwent laparotomy and dead, male foetus was extracted uneventfully. The placenta was attached to intestines and mesentery so that which was removed with great caution and secured haemostasis. The mother’s condition was stable throughout the operation and did not need to give the blood transfusion. The sutures were removed after 7 days and the healthy patient discharged from the hospital.Abdominal pregnancy is a rare condition and the diagnosis can be missed during the antenatal period and hence it is crucial to raise the awareness of health care personals especially in remote areas. The suspicious case of abdominal pregnancy should be referred to the experienced clinicians in the centres with diagnosis facilities

Effect of Body Positions on Lungs Volume in Asthmatic Patients: A Cross-sectional Study

Aim: The purpose of our research was to investigate the effect of different body positions on lungs volume by conducting pulmonary function test (PFT) values of the asthmatic patients. The objectives were (1) to assess the correlation between pulmonary function and posture in adult patients with asthma, (2) to determine the best position with higher lungs volume that was preferable for the asthmatic patients to relieve the asthma attack and for rehabilitation approach. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted in the Reconstructive and Rehabilitative Center at University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) between December 2015 and June 2016. Methodology: The total of 30 participants was recruited in this study. Among them, 15 participants were asthmatic patients and 15 participants were non-asthmatic, control persons. All theparticipants were between 19-25 years of age and they were enrolled after they had signed a written consent. Participants were selected using the inclusion criteria and Spiro Excel PC based pulmonary function test (PFT Medicaid Systems) were administered. Spirometer measurements (FVC, FEV1) were taken in the standing, sitting and supine positions. Each measurement was taken two times and the average values were analyzed. The order of the body positions was randomized. Results: In the asthmatic group, the best position was supine with a mean±standard deviation (SD) of FEV1/FVC, 77.93±17.37. Whereas, in control group, the best position was standing with a mean±SD of FEV1/FVC, 90.12±5.97. The second best positions were sitting position in the asthmatic group (75.37±16.37) and supine position in control group (89.70±8.79). Finally, the standing position had the lowest lungs function in the asthmatic group (73.63±17.08) and sitting position in control group (88.53±11.17). Conclusion: Our study showed that supine was the best position for measuring FEV1 and FVC of asthmatic participants. Therefore, supportive positions such as supine or leaning to the wall are suggested to improve pulmonary function of the patients, especially during asthmatic attack

Factors associated with psychological distress among Myanmar residents during COVID-19 pandemic crises

Background: COVID-19 pandemic reached a public health emergency status of international concern. The impacts and events associated with this were associated with adverse psychological impacts among the general public globally. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of psychological distress and to identify predictors associated with psychological distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic among the population in Myanmar. Design and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from March to April 2020 among adults, 18 years old and above, who reside in Myanmar through a structured questionnaire distributed in social media platforms. Univariate and Bivariate analyses were used to estimate the prevalence of COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI) symptoms and to test the associations between CPDI and the exposure variables. Logistic Regression Analysis was done to identify significant predictors of distress. Results: There were 530 participants in this study.37.4% of them did not have psychological distress,55.6% experienced mild to moderate psychological distress, and 7% experienced severe psychological distress due to COVID-19 pandemic. Simple and Multiple Logistic Regression Analyses were performed to determine the factors associated with psychological distress due to COVID-19. Conclusions: It was shown that the self-employed group and age group older than 45 years old had more psychological distress than others. However, Buddhists and people from the capital city had less distress than other religions and districts. This study recommends the government to develop better strategies for self-employed groups, elders, and the poor for a support, relief, and resettlement of their ruined status

Human resources for health: task shifting to promote basic health service delivery among internally displaced people in ethnic health program service areas in eastern Burma/Myanmar.

BACKGROUND: Burma/Myanmar was controlled by a military regime for over 50 years. Many basic social and protection services have been neglected, specifically in the ethnic areas. Development in these areas was led by the ethnic non-state actors to ensure care and the availability of health services for the communities living in the border ethnic-controlled areas. Political changes in Burma/Myanmar have been ongoing since the end of 2010. Given the ethnic diversity of Burma/Myanmar, many challenges in ensuring health service coverage among all ethnic groups lie ahead. METHODS: A case study method was used to document how existing human resources for health (HRH) reach the vulnerable population in the ethnic health organizations' (EHOs) and community-based organizations' (CBHOs) service areas, and their related information on training and services delivered. Mixed methods were used. Survey data on HRH, service provision, and training were collected from clinic-in-charges in 110 clinics in 14 Karen/Kayin townships through a rapid-mapping exercise. We also reviewed 7 organizational and policy documents and conducted 10 interviews and discussions with clinic-in-charges. FINDINGS: Despite the lack of skilled medical professionals, the EHOs and CBHOs have been serving the population along the border through task shifting to less specialized health workers. Clinics and mobile teams work in partnership, focusing on primary care with some aspects of secondary care. The rapid-mapping exercise showed that the aggregate HRH density in Karen/Kayin state is 2.8 per 1,000 population. Every mobile team has 1.8 health workers per 1,000 population, whereas each clinic has between 2.5 and 3.9 health workers per 1,000 population. By reorganizing and training the workforce with a rigorous and up-to-date curriculum, EHOs and CBHOs present a viable solution for improving health service coverage to the underserved population. CONCLUSION: Despite the chronic conflict in Burma/Myanmar, this report provides evidence of the substantive system of health care provision and access in the Karen/Kayin State over the past 20 years. It underscores the climate of vulnerability of the EHOs and CBHOs due to lack of regional and international understanding of the political complexities in Burma/Myanmar. As Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) integration gathers pace, this case study highlights potential issues relating to migration and health access. The case also documents the challenge of integrating indigenous and/or cross-border health systems, with the ongoing risk of deepening ethnic conflicts in Burma/Myanmar as the peace process is negotiated

Investigating changes within the handling system of the largest semi-captive population of Asian elephants

The current extinction crisis leaves us increasingly reliant on captive populations to maintain vulnerable species. Approximately one third of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) are living in semi-captive conditions in range countries. Their relationship with humans stretches back millennia, yet elephants have never been fully domesticated. We rely on the expertise of traditional handlers (mahouts) to manage these essentially wild animals, yet this profession may be threatened in the modern day. Here, we study the handling system of semi-captive timber elephants in Myanmar; the largest global semi-captive population (similar to 5 000). We investigate how recent changes in Myanmar may have affected the keeping system and mahout-elephant interactions. Structured interviews investigated changes to mahout attitude and experience over the last two decades, as perceived by those who had worked in the industry for at least 10 years (n=23) and as evaluated in current mahouts (n=210), finding mahouts today are younger (median age 22yrs), less experienced (median experience 3yrs), and change elephants frequently, threatening traditional knowledge transfer. Mahout-elephant interactions manifested as 5 components ('job appreciation'; 'experience is necessary'; 'human-elephant interaction'; 'own knowledge'; 'elephant relationship'), according to Principal Components Analysis. Experienced mahouts and mahouts of bulls and younger elephants were more likely to agree that 'experience is necessary' to be a mahout. Mahouts with difficult elephants scored lower on 'human-elephant interaction' and a mahout's perception of their 'own knowledge' increased with more experience. Our finding of change in terms of mahout experience, age and commitment in the largest semi-captive elephant population suggests need for formal training and assessment of impacts on elephant welfare; these are findings applicable to thousands of elephants under similar management

Seasonal variation of health in Asian elephants

Long-lived species are often predicted to be buffered against seasonal variation: longevity means low annual mortality and reproductive rates and annual variability in climate may therefore have a smaller impact on population growth rates of long-lived species in comparison to short-lived ones. However, little is known of the physiological mechanisms underlying such patterns in long-lived species. In this study, we investigated seasonal variation in the health of Asian elephants living in a seasonal monsoon climate. We used two complementary methods: (i) global and (ii) trait-by-trait analyses of seasonal effects on 23 health parameters of 225 individually marked elephants with known age and reproductive and health history, with repeated measures per individual over a 26-month period. The global analysis highlighted the biggest differences in health between the hot and monsoon seasons. Our trait-specific analyses identified the physiological functions underlying such health variation in different ecological settings, including haematological, immunological, muscular, kidney and liver functions, as well as protein balance and electrolytes. Overall, the results suggest that even long-lived, large mammals may experience physiological changes in response to seasonal variation that in extreme circumstances can pose a significant health risk. Key words: Environmental heterogeneity, health markers, long-lived mammals, sub-tropical climat